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Flowers on the Prairie

Flowers on the Prairie

Marty’s photo of the day #4815: The first two times Deb and I rented a yurt in the American Prairie (located in Montana) were in September. That was a great time for large mammals and enjoying the Judith River. Two weeks ago, we went back for a third time, to get a taste of the […]

Burrowing Owls in the Morning

Burrowing Owls in the Morning

Marty’s photo of the day #4810: In the past, I had only been able to photograph burrowing owls at dusk. In fact, last week while staying at the American Prairie, I did just that for two evenings in a row. Those dusk photos turned out pretty good, especially considering the distance and how high I […]

Dewy 1 and Dewy 2

Dewy 1 and Dewy 2

Marty’s photo of the day #4808: Deb and I are back from spending four nights in a yurt on the American Prairie. Formerly called the American Prairie Reserve, it currently contains 475,000 acres of pristine prairie in central Montana, and the nonprofit organization that controls it has a goal of eventually acquiring enough land to […]

The juvenile great horned owl

The juvenile great horned owl

Marty’s photo of the day #4797: Two days ago, I took Deb and our dog, Nellie, to the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge (Montana), in search of great horned owls and their babies. Finding wild animals on cue rarely happens, but I was able to find one of the adults, which was more-or-less babysitting a […]

Weavings In the Wild

Weavings In the Wild

Marty’s photo of the day #4783: Here’s a “making of” photo, showing what Deb Essen and I were doing earlier this week. One of the cool ideas Deb came up with for her weaving instruction books is to photograph her completed projects “in the wilds of Montana.” And as her photographer-husband, I get to shoot […]

The Dragon Tree

The Dragon Tree

Marty’s photo of the day #4782: Yesterday, I posted about my wife, Deb, and I hanging out at a U.S. Forest Service cabin this past Monday thru Wednesday (on the East Fork of the Bitterroot River in Montana). We spent part of our first day driving remote mountain roads, looking for photoshoot locations, where I […]

The instant pond

The instant pond

Marty’s photo of the day #4779: At the Essen Wildlife Refuge (i.e. the 25 protected-for-wildlife acres where my wife and I live) we have an upper and lower level. The lower level is lush forest with a seasonal pond. Since we moved to Montana, in 1996, that pond has filled itself every spring and emptied […]

Mitch one, two, three!

Mitch one, two, three!

Marty’s photo of the day #4755: These are western painted turtles, photographed in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana. And I found out their names! The one on the left is Mitch; the one on the right is his brother Mitch; and the one on the bottom is his other brother Mitch.